1. Field of the Invention
This invention is generally directed to beach towels and the like and more specifically to a beach towel which may be easily and directly converted to a beach bag or a tote bag without requiring the towel to be folded so the tote bag may be utilized to carry various articles including clothing and other personal belongings to and from a beach, pool or other recreational area. The beach towel is also provided with a plurality of corner pockets which may be utilized to selectively store or house such items as keys, change, sunglasses, watches and the like so that such items are not accidentally lost or directly exposed to the sun or other elements. Further, the pockets are designed in such a manner that as the beach towel is converted to a tote bag or beach bag, the pockets will automatically assume a position with the opening to the pockets being vertically spaced above the bottom portion of the pockets so that items carried therein will not become accidentally dislodged. In addition, the pockets associated with the beach towel may either be suspended on the exterior of the tote bag pouch or may be retained inside the pouch of the tote bag or beach bag by folding the corners of the towel inwardly towards the center of the towel prior to its being converted to a tote bag. In this manner, the style or configuration of the tote bag may be selectively altered.
The beach towel of the present invention may also include a shoulder carrying strap which may be selectively stored when not in use in one of the pockets or may be attached to the outwardly extending portions of a pull cord which is sewn or otherwise secured between the upper and lower surfaces of the beach towel with the carrying strap being positioned beneath the beach towel when the beach towel is laid flat when in use.
In another embodiment of the present invention, the upper surface of the beach towel may include a configuration of, or be stylized to simulate the face of, a sun dial. By properly positioning the beach towel with respect to a north/south orientation, a person may selectively utilize their body or the shoulder carrying strap to function as the gnomon or style of the sun dial to cast a shadow which would give an indication of the general time of day.
2. History of the Related Art
Heretofore, many structures and designs have been developed for multi-functional beach or recreational type equipment. Included in such equipment are combination garments or combination articles including beach mats, beach towels, beach robes and similar items which may be folded or otherwise converted into an alternative configuration to form a satchel, pouch, tote bag, beach bag or other such item so that the original garment, mat, towel or the like can simultaneously serve several functions and thereby reduce the number of items which an individual carries to and from a recreational area including a beach, a pool, lakeside or the like.
Many people have experienced the inconvenience of having to transport personal items, belongings and lounge furniture to and from a beach or other resort or recreational location. Further, in many instances, it is not convenient for an individual to make two or more trips to and from a place of lodging or an automobile to carry equipment to and from a beach, lakeshore or other area. Therefore, it becomes necessary to manipulate a plurality of items at a single time including chairs, towels, lotions, sunglasses, wallets, keys, coolers, reading matter, umbrellas and the like at one time. The complexity and logistics of moving articles to and from a beach or other such area is further complicated when small children are present as parents are required to carry additional clothing, play equipment and other items in addition to the equipment that would normally be used.
To facilitate the transportation of articles to and from beaches or other recreational areas, individuals have made use of large tote bags in which a plurality of personal items may be selctively stored. Conventionally, such tote bags are canvas bags having carrying handles which may be either supported in a person's hand or suspended from a person's shoulder. Unfortunately, such beach bags offer only a single utility as carriers or storage satchels. Also, such conventional beach bags or tote bags are not normally provided with secure article retention pockets which may be utilized to house watches, jewelry, sunglasses and other items and keep such items separate and apart from other articles which are carried in the bags. Therefore, articles carried in conventional tote bags are mixed together and a person must search through the entire bag in order to locate particular items. In addition, conventional open tote bags or beach bags do not provide sufficient security for such items as wallets, change, watches and the like which should be kept or retained in an enclosed or sealed area.
A number of patents have been issued in the past to individuals who have designed new and unique combination garments, towels, mats or the like and tote bags. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,976,113 to Kim, a convertible blanket and tote bag is shown wherein the tote bag is formed by folding the towel along predesignated lines and thereafter securing edges of the blanket together with zippered components so that the blanket assumes a configuration of a satchel or open sack A pair of carrying straps are subsequently selectively attached to snap rings which are sewn or otherwise secured to the material forming the blanket. In this type of structure, reinforcing elements or tapes are sewn or secured in spaced locations to the material which forms the beach blanket. Such tapes serve as reinforcing for the edges of the tote bag and increase the rigidity of the bag. Unfortunately, such a structure requires that an individual converting the beach blanket to a bag follow a series of folding steps in order to form the tote bag from the extended beach blanket. Such folding not only requires a great deal of time and effort but also requires that the individual know how to make the folds in order to properly assemble the tote bag. Also, with this type of structure, any articles that are placed on the blanket, must be removed therefrom in order to allow the blanket to be folded to assume the tote bag configuration. The conversion of such structure therefore requires that many articles be placed on the ground or sand in surrounding relationship with respect to the blanket as it is folded. Thereafter, the articles must be again placed within the tote bag. In view of all the manipulation and movement of both articles and of the required assembling and folding that is encountered in converting such blankets into article carriers, such configurations are not satisfactory for normal use.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,197,891 to Comollo another structure for a combination beach mat and shoulder bag is disclosed wherein the beach mat is in the form of a rectangular sheet of flexible material which is folded and secured by a plurality of connecting tapes which are secured in spaced location at various points along the surface of the mat or blanket This configuration not only is undesirable due to the requirement that the mat be folded into a properly assembled configuration, but also as the assembly must be secured by tape material which is placed on the surface of the blanket or mat. Such tape material may become coated or otherwise contaminated if the blanket were to be utilized in a sandy environment thereby adversely effecting the assembly of the tote bag from the folded beach blanket or mat. Further, as with the prior structure to Kim, the present structure would require that articles placed on the beach mat be removed therefrom in order to permit the tote bag to be assembled. Thereafter, articles would have to be replaced within the tote bag, all of which requires extra time and manipulative effort on the part of the person utilizing the combination article carrier and mat. Other prior art configurations for convertible beach towels or blankets which are folded along predesignated lines to form the tote bags are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,659,404 to Kelsey, 4,375,111 to Hall, 4,516,668 to Grayek and 2,344,010 to Walsh.
To provide additional security for personal belongings, some prior art combination beach towels and tote bags have been provided with separate pockets in which articles may be selectively retained. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,195,378 to Parker, a multi-purpose beach towel is disclosed which includes a plurality of individual pockets located at one end of the towel in which various personal items may be stored. This type of combination beach article offers more secure storage space, however, does not provide for additional carrying capacity when converted to a carrying package. In the particular structure of Parker, the towel is designed to be rolled from one end to the other when not in use with articles being retained within the pockets mounted thereto. A separate strap is provided which is placed around the rolled towel and may be utilized to transport the towel and the articles carried therein.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,477,552, another combination mat and tote bag is disclosed which includes a separate pocket in which articles may be selectively stored. Unfortunately, the structure of this reference is similar to many of the aforementioned prior art structures and requires that the mat be folded in a specific manner in order to form a tote bag. As with the prior art references discussed above, it is complicated and time consuming to fold a blanket into a specific configuration and frequently, articles supported or placed on the beach towel or mat will have to be removed and then reinserted into the tote bag after it is formed. Other examples of combination covers or towels and portable bags are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,791,775 to Sartell and 3,176,315 to Freund.
In an effort to facilitate the conversion of a beach towel to a beach bag or tote bag, other prior art references have been designed to forego the requirement for folding the beach blanket or towel into a specific configuration. In U.S. Pat. No. 2,626,648 to Anderson, a combination towel and beach bag is disclosed having a pair of pull cords secured at each end of the towel. The ends of the pull cords may be tied in a diagonal relationship so as to create a pouch-like configuration for the towel so that the towel may be utilized to selectively carry other articles. Unfortunately, with this type of configuration, it is necessary that the ends of the pull cords be tied relative to one another and thereafter the entire assembly carefully lifted to insure that articles do not become dislodged from the towel as the towel is lifted by the pull cords. Further, even when assembled into a beach bag configuration, it is possible that articles can be accidentally displaced through the sides of the bag as the sides of the towel are not sealed with respect to one another.
In U.S. Design Pat. No. 128,122 to Lewis, a beach kit is disclosed having a generally flat body portion in which a variety of articles may be selectively stored. The kit is collapsible to form a tote bag by use of a pull string which is interwoven between folded sections of the panel portion of the beach kit. Unfortunately, with the structure disclosed, the kit is not designed to function as a beach blanket or towel as retention members are placed throughout the panel member. Also, the pull cord material would interfere with the use of the panel portion of the kit as a towel or blanket.
Other examples of prior art combination bags and clothing articles are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,315,126 to Michalke et al. and 2,731,997 to Muth et al.